Engineering Education Starts at an Early Age

In honor of
National Engineers Week, I’d like to recognize how interest in science and engineering does not necessarily begin in classrooms or derive from textbooks. In fact, the desire to innovate and discover often occurs organically at an early age.

While most of the general public understands that their car or A/C unit is a system, few recognize the abundance of simple systems we interact with on a daily basis. Everyday systems such as doorknobs or clean tap water are just as important, and require the hard work of many great engineering minds.

As the level of system complexity escalates and we begin solving some of the world’s biggest problems, our society will grow increasingly dependent upon the talents of generations who are just now beginning to explore their creativity and learn about the way things work. Nurturing this exploration at a young age is vitally important.

Tools such as the Lego Mindstorms programmable robots are cleverly disguised as novelties while doubling as Trojan horses into the developing minds of children. While these tools are engaging and fun for kids to play with, they introduce fundamental concepts of system design that will be vital to a future in engineering education.

It’s equally critical that we arm the next generation of engineers with scalable system design tools. In other words, truly innovative systems are designed after years of practice and scaffolded learning. Getting students started in design at an early age with tools such as the Lego kits allow kids to understand the basics of system design on a platform that’s not dissimilar to the way professional engineers design complex systems in the workforce.

We must recognize that keeping students engaged with lessons that are relevant to their everyday lives is essential. Engaging curriculum directly links abstract engineering concepts to impressive and dynamic real-world applications. Popular news items such as NASA exploration, CERN, or the recent Felix Baumgartner space jump are outstanding examples of innovation and discovery that attract kids to science and engineering in the first place.

Many engineering educators have already begun to recognize this trend and started the glacial pace of evolving their curriculum to incorporate experimentation and hands-on projects that not only teach the math of engineering, but also empower students to begin building basic systems to apply those concepts. As the tools for system design become more democratized and available to all ages and skill levels, the seeds planted at an early age will blossom into an empowered generation of innovative and passionate engineers. Scaling the lessons and building the tools for every level of this new educational approach is the pressing challenge for those of us who realize its monumental importance.

It’s been 40 years since we first set foot on the moon, but I still remember how that monumental achievement ignited my initial fascination in science and led me to pursue an education, and ultimately, a career, in engineering. I don’t know if I would have stayed as motivated to study, innovate, and discover without that inspiration, and I have to ask, are we providing that inspiration for our children today?

As the Director of Training and Academic Programs for National Instruments, Dave Wilson ensures that the most effective product proficiency development strategies and tactics are implemented worldwide. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in applied physics from the State University of New York.

I know many parents that don't let their kids play video games, especially PC video games, until they are very old, 8-10 yo.

While I played PC games when I was 4 yo. My father even made a simple space invader style shooter game for me.

Most kids and teens I know have zero clue about computers, electronics, etc, past taking to the repair shop.

I worked with circuits and built computers from a very early age.

In other words, I am an engineer, while these kids I know are looking to get into the art fields. They may make it big, but there is a high chance they will not. I think exposing children to something more complex than passive LEGOs is a great idea. Circuit kits, LEGO Mindstorm robotics sets, and computer programming is essential. Whether they become engineers or the next pop-star, the exposure will expand their minds.

What makes this movie stand out from the typical high school sports story is that the teenagers are undocumented immigrants, and the big game is a NASA-sponsored marine robotics competition. Like many other Hollywood movies, however, Spare Parts only tells part of the story. What the film shows -- and doesn’t show -- raises important issues affecting STEM education in the US.

A program to educate kids about the science and technology of plastics as well how they can have future careers in the field has received a $200,000 funding boost from the National Plastics Center to expand

Lots of kids enjoy playing with toy race cars, and some may even dream of being race car drivers when they grow up. NASCAR is taking inspiration from this interest with the launch of an in-school and online learning platform for STEM education, the first ever from the sport of racing.

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